Thoughts on Going Home

N.B. I am currently at Heathrow Airport, in London, enjoying my last few hours on European soil. I hope to be home by Sunday evening, however I may be delayed by fresh ash from Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano.

As my final post from Europe, I have decided that instead of writing about how much I am going to miss Denmark, or how much I have learned since coming here, it would be interesting to list some of the things I am going to have to re-adjust to as I move back home. Some of them are things I am looking forward to, other I am more nervous about. If nothing else, it will be a great way to highlight some of the differences between living in Denmark and the US. However, I hope it will also help me to mediate some of the adjustments I have to go through. I need to decide what I will bring back from Denmark, and what I will leave behind, what I will change about myself, and what old habits I will readopt. I am hopeful that my time in Denmark will have changed something, even if I am not conscious of what exactly it is. So, without further ado, here is my list:

1. Cheep Food. I won’t lie; this is one of the things I am looking forward to most. Scandinavia is known world wide as one of the most expensive places to live, especially for foreigners. Everything is more expensive in Denmark, especially food. A reasonable pastry is about $2, a latte perhaps $6, a cheap piece of pizza might be $2.80, and a bottle of water $5. These are cheap food in Denmark. Going to a fast food restaurant will easily set you back $10 to $15, and a cheap night out will be at least $25, plus drinks. Although I hate how much it costs in Denmark, I have to admit that it really makes me appreciate eating-out so much more, because it is a special-occasion for everyone.

2. Altitude. I have spent the last nine months living at sea level. Denver, the mile high city, is more than 2 km higher than Denmark. The highest I have been on this entire trip was the top of Untersberg, near Salzburg, Austria, and that was just about as high as Denver is. Although I am looking forward to the mountains again, I am going to have to take a little time to the general lack of oxygen in Colorado, especially in the mountains which can be more than 4 km above sea level.

3. The English Language. Although I conversed with my professors, friends, and host-family primarily in English, I was living in a country where the dominant language was Danish. Even though most Danes are fluent in English, I was at times more or less immersed in the Danish Language, which I was attempting to learn. Although I am no where near fluent, few foreigners ever are, I made more progress than most Americans, and felt comfortable in situations where I heard nothing but Danish for hours. Although I complained about the difficulty of pronouncing the guttural consonants and absurd vowels of the Danish Language, they eventually started to grow on me, and I will certainly miss hearing them. I will have to rely on my small collection of Danish Pop-music and movie, plus the wonder that is YouTube, to get my weekly fill of the Danish Language, if only to remind me how ridiculous it really sounds.

4. Cloths Dryers. For some reasons, one of the biggest shocks when I first got to Denmark was the lack of a dryer. Most Danish families don’t have one, as they are extremely expensive and use up a lot of energy. Danes prefer to dry their cloths the old-fashioned way, outside…and in the hallway during the winter. I became accustomed to the routine of doing my laundry and waiting a day for my cloths to dry. It is going to be strange to imagine that now it will take three hours for cloths to go from hamper to drawer. I just can’t fathom it.

5. The Movies. Another insanely expensive commodity in Denmark is the price of a movie ticket, often between $16 and $20. As such, I have only seen five movies in theaters while I was here; Abrazos Rotos, New Moon, Sherlock Holmes, Avatar, and Valentine’s Day. In America, I would easily see that many movies in a month. I love going to the movies. It is such a relaxing-yet-enlightening experience, and generally doesn’t cost that much. I am very much looking forward to getting back to my favorite independent theaters, where I can see a great foreign film, with English subtitles, for only $7.

6. Big Cars. Denmark is known for being relatively progressive when it comes to environmental issues, and as such, most Danes drive small, climate-friendly, cars. Most Danish families only have one car, and many don’t have any at all, preferring to bike or take the train. One of my professors was proud to explain to us that he has been able to live for sixty years, raise three children, and maintain a summerhouse in North Zealand, all without ever having owned a car…although he does have five bikes. He takes the bus to work, he bikes to the grocery store (every day), and if he needs to get to his summer home, he just has to hop on a train, and is there within an hour. I have grown accustomed to the streets of Denmark being dominated by bike, and very small cars. The largest personal car I have seen on the road here is a Jeep Cherokee, and it looked huge to me. I am a little apprehensive about coming back to a country where SUVs dominate, let alone having to drive one again.

7. The Media. I have to admit; I really didn’t miss American news while I was away. It was very refreshing to get away from the partisanship and polemics that is the American media. I loved getting my news from the Danes, or from BBC, as they offer such a unique, albeit biased, perspective. When Obama passed health-care reform Europeans rejoiced that America had finally joined the civilized world. Experiencing the European media has given me the opportunity to really take a step back from American politics, and attempt to understand what is really going on. I learned a lot, though not much that can be described in writing, though I will try to write more once I am back in the states. That being said, I am also somewhat nervous about what I missed in American media while I was away. What Music and TV-Shows, not to mention books, don’t I know about? What new words have entered the American dialect of which I will be woefully unaware? I am really nervous that at some point, someone will make a veiled reference to pop-culture, which will go right over my head. Maybe I worry for no reason, as Denmark is fairly current on American pop-culture…I just like to feel like I am always aware of what has been going on in the world, and that I may have missed out on something important.

8. Weather. During my fist two months in Denmark, the weather was perfect. It was sunny almost every day, moderate temperatures, with very little rain. Then November hit, it began to get cooler, and significantly darker, and by the end of December, it was dark by 4:30 PM and snowing. After the New Year, and what turned out to be one of the coldest Danish winters in 20 years, we were all expecting spring to arrive. The sun began to come back, but spring never really arrived in full. It got warmer, it rained instead of snowed, and some of the plants began to grow again. However, we never had more than a week of really great sunny weather, even when the sun was out for 16 hours a day. I know that it hasn’t been much better in Denver, but I feel like I am ready for some genuinely warm weather, instead of the undecided chilly climate that I have learned to love in Denmark.

My Final Weeks in Denmark

I have been pretty busy with school these last few weeks, but have also been trying to experience as much as Copenhagen as possible. I went into tourist mode again, trying to see the last few sights I hadn’t seen yet, and I am proud to say, I believe I succeeded. On top of final papers and examinations, I was able to visit all the museums, churches, and castles I had been putting off in the hope of better weather. Alas, summer-weather never arrived, so I just went out and saw them anyway.

In terms of museums, I have visited the National Museum, the New Carlsberg Glyptotek, The National Galleries of Art, The Thorvaldsen Museum, and the Open Air Museum. I also visited Frederiksborg Palace in Hillerød, Kronborg Palace in Helsingør, and Rosenborg and Christiansborg Palaces in Copenhagen. I also revisited some of my favorite places. It has been a great few weeks, and I only wish I had more time to write about it. Instead, I will upload just a few of my photos, with descriptions, in the hopes of demonstrating just how beautiful Denmark can be, even in bad weather.

The National Cathedral

Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek

Thorvaldsen Museum

Gundestrup Cauldren at National Gallery

Open-Air Museum

Rosenborg Slot

Crown Jewels at Rosenborg

Frederiksborg Slot in Hillerød

Kronborg Slot in Helsingør, Hamlet's Castle

Frederiksberg Slot

Church of Our Savior

View of Copenhagen from the top of Church of Our Savior

Beowulf Revisited

Perhaps the one thing I will never forget about my high school freshman World History course is our final assignment. We were told to read a book written in the middle ages, or about, the Middle Ages. As I was already obsessed with the works of JRR Tolkien as a fifteen year-old, I naturally decided to read Beowulf, the Anglo-Saxon legend of a Geatish hero who liberates the Danish King Hroðgar from the monster Grendel. Hroðgar is a semi-legendary king of the Danes, also known as Roar, who is believed to have lived sometime in the 6th century. Little is known about him from the sources, except that his lived in a great hall called Heorot, said to be so spectacular that it was called the Byzantium of the north. Several early Danish historians, most notably Saxo Grammaticus, wrote that Heorot was located in the town of Hleiðra, known in modern Danish as Lejre. Lejre is situated on the Island of Zealand, a mere 40 kilometers southwest of Copenhagen. In 1986 a Danish archeologist discovered a Viking age (c. 900) hall there, and then nearby a hall from the mid-6th century, the exact time Roar is said to have lived. This hall, some fifty meters long, is now believed to be the very same Heorot from the Beowulf legend. It is a stone-throw away from several ship-setting burials, which could even be the burial place of Roar himself. Last weekend, I was giddily surprised to discover that my Nordic Mythology class would be visiting Lejre as a field-study. We were actually able to stand on the spot where Heorot stood, and where Roar is buried. Although all one can see are a few stones or a sod-mound, it was an incredible experience to be able to see the places I had read about so many years ago. It was certainly one of the most amazing experiences of my trip to Denmark so far, even if there wasn’t that much to actually see. The idea of being in places where great things are said to have happened is very satisfying for me, especially when they took place so long ago, and have captivated the imagination of the northern peoples for generations.

A ship-setting burrial

The outline of Heorot

Our field trip also featured a trip to the Roskilde Viking Ship Museum

(which I had already seen, and wrote about here) as well as to Trelleborg Ring-Fortress. Throughout Denmark there are five ring-fortresses, built all virtually at the same time, and seemingly as military facilities. It is believed that they were built in the late 900’s by the Danish King Harald Bluetooth (who also erected the Jelling Stones described here). Harald is said to have made the Danes Christian, and likely did so using forces housed in these ring-fortresses. They are impressive structures, even today. Surrounded by as massive earthen mound, and symmetrically arranged, they certainly would have looked intimidating in their day, when nothing of their kind had ever been seen in the north. The Trelleborg museums has also reconstructed what one of those halls might of looked like, so our class was able to sit inside for a while, around the fire pit, and quite fittingly, drink a little mead.

Trelleborg Ring-Fortress

A Reconstructed Mead-Hall

Bispebjerg

Bispebjerg – The Bishop’s Mountain – is a northern suburb of Copenhagen, and is now home to a large number of Denmark’s immigrants from the Middle East. However, it also has two very interesting attractions from the first half of the 20^th century; Bispebjerg Kirkegård (Bispebjerg Cemetery) and Grundtvigs Kirke (Grundtvig’s Church).

Bispebjerg Cemetery was established in 1903, to accommodate the ever-growing and ever-diversifying population of Copenhagen. It has several special sections for Catholics and Muslims, as well as for the victims of the Nazi Occupation of Denmark, both Danish and British. Additionally, it has sections devoted to Swedes as well as several for Russian and German Soldiers. It is certainly a multicultural cemetery. At the main entrance, the rules of the cemetery are explained in a quadralingual sign: in Danish, English, Turkish, and Arabic. Danes maintain their cemeteries much better than Americans do; they are virtually city parks where people happen to be buried. It is a place with well-kept avenues lined with well-manicured trees, as well as areas where more naturally growing flora flourishes. In one of these areas I discovered several of Denmark’s well-known forårsbebuder (heralds of spring), the first wildflowers of the year, marking the true beginning of spring. The birch trees were also undergoing their yearly transformation; shedding their old bark for a new reddish-tan covering that will soon fade back to the distinctive black-and-white by which birch trees are so recognizable.

Bispebjerg Cemetery

Forårsbebuder: Erantis (Eranthis)

Forårsbebuder: Vintergæk (Snowdrop)

Forårsbebuder: Krukus (Crocus)

New Birch Bark

Not far from the cemetery sits Grundtvig’s Church, a stone-structure built in the 1920’s in Expressionist style. It is named after Denmark’s illustrious Nikolaj Frederik Severin Grundtvig, a scholar and priest from the Danish Golden Age, the first half of the 19^th century. He transformed Lutheranism in Denmark, founded the Danish Folk High School system, and encouraged the preservation of Scandinavian mythology and folklore as essential to the national character. He is often credited as the founder of modern Danish national consciousness, and as such is one of the most important Danes of the Golden Age. The church built in his honor is very unique, because it is one of the only expressionist churches built. It is very elongated, reaching to heaven, with a uniform façade of tan bricks. The buildings around the church were built of the same material and style, which gives the whole neighborhood a cohesive aura. Personally, as much as I liked the church, I felt the overall affect was very sterile and inorganic, especially when contrasted with the abundance of the cemetery. It is an interesting paradox that the space dedicated to honoring the dead is most alive, while the space dedicated to celebrating God-given life feels so lifeless. The inside of the church is incredibly simplistic. Plain wooden chairs, not pews, line the nave. There are two simple pulpits, and a brick altar clothed in a white fabric toped by a candelabra. There are no paintings on the walls, and no stained-glass windows. Perhaps it was the conspicuous lack of ornamentation, or the fact that it was the first time I had ever been the only person in such a large church, but it left me with a very strange feeling afterwards. I was glad to be back outside in the fresh spring air, which has finally arrived in Copenhagen, though I will soon be heading south to the Alp Mountains, where I am hoping spring has truly sprung.

Danes are like Hobbits…

“Hobbits are an unobtrusive but very ancient people, more numerous formerly than they are today; for they love peace and quiet and good tilled earth: a well-ordered and well-farmed countryside was their favourite haunt.”~J.R.R. Tolkien, Prologue to The Lord of the Rings

Yes, we all know that Hobbits are a short, merry folk who make their living as simple farmers, and who live in a hole in the ground. We also know that Danes are tall people, emotionally reserved, less than three-percent of whom still farm, and all of whom live very much above the ground. Nevertheless, there is something about Danes that reminds me irresistibly of the Hobbits. Maybe it’s their love of ale or of breaking into song. Maybe it is their excessive smoking habits. Either way, there are some interesting parallels to be drawn between the land of The Shire and the Kingdom of Denmark. Some of these comparisons are, of course, rather superficial, but still a lot of fun to ponder.

Hobbits are known for enjoying the comfort of their homes. The home represents all that is wholesome and good. It is a place for family and friends to come together, shut themselves off from the perils of the outside world, and enjoy a candle-lit meal and lengthy conversation. The same is true of the Danish home. They have even have a word for it, hygge, meaning coziness and comfort. Danish hygge involves many of the same elements, especially the candlelight.

Food in Denmark is also a lot like what I would imagine Hobbits eat. Traditional Danish cuisine consists of barley, potatoes, rye, roots, greens, berries, and mushrooms, the last of which we are told Hobbits are particularly fond of. A large portion of Danish foods are also grown organically, much like they would have been in a pre-industrial Shire. Like Hobbits, Danes are also great lovers of beer. Denmark is the seventh highest consumer of beer per capita in the world, at over 23 gallons per person per year.

Another intriguing similarity between The Shire and Denmark is how they perceive outsiders. Hobbits are notoriously distrustful of outsiders, and to an extent so are Danes. I have written before about the issues Denmark is currently having now that there are a large number of immigrants living in Denmark, the same would probably be true in the Shire. At the same time, there is a lot of well-meaning animosity between the different farthings of the Shire. We hear a lot about how Hobbits of Hobbiton think Bucklanders are a queer-folk, much in the way that Zealanders in Copenhagen love making fun of the residents of Western Jutland.

In a little known chapter of the Lord of The Rings, The Scouring of the Shire, Frodo and the Hobbits return to their homeland to find it under the control of a puppet leader, Lotho Sackville-Baggins, who everyone knows is under the control of the evil wizard Saruman. Much like the Danes during WWII, most of the Hobbits are quietly complacent, preferring the peacefully accept the circumstances. However, a small resistance faction eventually contributed to the downfall of Saruman/Nazi Germany.

Finally, in the ultimate marriage of Danish environmental consciousness and Hobbit aesthetics, I give you the Low-Impact Woodland Home. It looks like a Hobbit-hole, but it is really an ecologically sound home, built from scratch, with special consideration taken to how it would impact the environment.

When Liberal means Conservative

I have been planning on writing about Danish Politics for quite some time now, but have never worked up the energy to do so. Some of my friends have taken the Danish Politics class, and so are probably much more qualified to analyze it in-depth than I am. However, I will share some of my impressions and opinions, from a slightly different perspective, I hope.

It is often difficult for many Americans to discuss non-American politics. They have to step away from the categorical concepts we use for American politics, as politics are organized differently here. The most obvious of these is the infamous liberal-conservative pairing. In America, these are seen as polar opposites on a political spectrum, within which all politicians must categorize themselves. However, these distinctions do not exist as clearly in Danish Politics, or even European Politics in general.

In fact, as my title implies, the words liberal and conservative mean very similar political programs here in Denmark. One must take into consideration the origin of these ideas in European politics. Once upon a time, the nations of Europe were governed by absolute monarchies. However, during the Age of Enlightenment, a group of individuals decided people should have rights, such as equality, liberty, private property, and democracy. Those individuals who for the next hundred or so years fought for these rights were called Liberals. Those individuals who fought against them, who were in support of the continued reign of the aristocracy were called Conservatives. However, as democracy took hold, and eventually all people were secured basic democratic rights, these terms began to change their meaning. In America they came to mean one thing, in Europe, another. One aspect of the original program of European liberals was the promotion of a free-market economy, and it is this element that modern European liberals have emphasized as an important ideology. However, Conservatism in Europe also promotes the capitalist ideal. Therefore, in terms of economic policy, European liberals and conservatives often have a lot in common. They sometimes differ on social and cultural issues, with the conservatives tending to be more traditional and resistant to change. In Europe, the Liberal-Conservative dichotomy is best understood in different terms, namely Progressive-Liberal. Progressive parties are those who favor socialist economic systems, where the government has more power to regulate the market, and to provide social support for its people. Progressives are also forward thinking when it comes to social or cultural issues.

Below are some of Denmark’s mainstream political parties, along with short descriptions and their positions on certain issues. I think it is interesting that there are so many different political parties in Denmark, and how they do not at all fall into the categories that American political parties do. I think the US could learn a lot from Europe’s multi-party systems. The two-party system stifles diversity of political thought, and pigeonholes politicians into having to choose from the lesser of two evils, as opposed to a party that truly represents their varied beliefs.

The Liberals (literally: The Left)- The current governing party. Generally right-of-center, meaning their name is deceptive. They originally started as an advocate of the farmers. They are economically in favor of a free-market and of keeping taxes low. Generally cautious about immigration. In favor of individual rights in relation to the state and other institutions, and less interested in the rights of groups.

The Conservative Party-In coalition with the Liberals. Similar in many issues. Right-of-center, though more liberal than other European conservative parties. Slightly more skeptical of immigration and minority rights.

The Social Democrats (Socialdemokraterne)-Currently the largest opposition party. A progressive, left-of-center party. Economically in favor of social democracy, that is a strong social welfare state. Culturally progressive, and slightly more sympathetic to immigrants.

The Socialist People's Party (Socialistisk Folkeparti)-A left wing, socially democratic and green party. Inspired by the Marxist critique of capitalism, they believe the state should be responsible for shaping a positive society for all its members, and not for large corporations and other institutions. They are, however, skeptical of the European Union, and of adopting the Euro as a currency.

The Unity Alliance, The Red-Green Alliance-A combination of the Communist Party of Denmark, the Left-Socialist Party, and the Socialist Worker’s Party, this is Denmark’s farthest left party. They support a comprehensive social welfare system, social justice for all, environmental sustainability, and international solidarity in the struggle against capitalism. They are also opposed to the EU.

The Danish Peoples Party-I have written about this party before, here. It is perhaps the most enigmatic party. On the one hand, they support improved welfare for the elderly and for animals, but are opposed to the EU. Their most outspoken policies, however, are opposition to immigration into Denmark. They are practically openly racist against Muslims and other non-Danes. They oppose headscarves, and mosques in Denmark. They once offered to pay immigrants to leave the country permanently. They also support higher spending on national defense and the US lead war on terror. Their political catchphrase is “Denmark for Danes.”

I would like to be clear, these are only my perceptions and opinions about Danish politics. If you want more information, I am providing links to their English-language web-pages. Except for Danish People’s Party, which, not surprisingly, only has a page in Danish.

Venstre, Konservative, Socialdemokraterne, Socialistisk Folkeparti, Enhedslisten, Dansk Folkeparti (Danish), Radikale Venstre, Liberal Alliance.

Dåb og Dyrehave

I recently realized that this blog has focused rather heavily on my travels abroad, and that I have neglected writing about my life here in Denmark. This is due partly to the fact that I haven’t done that much exciting lately, because the weather has been awful. Denmark is just now coming out of the coldest winter in 20 years; so most of us have stayed cozily inside our houses. Nevertheless, now that the sun has returned, I will undoubtedly be exploring Copenhagen again, and hopefully writing about it.

For now, I am going to tell you about today, my lovely Danish Sunday. My host mother’s sister recently had a daughter, and today the whole family got together for he baptism (Dåb) into Den Danske Folkekirke (the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Denmark). Generally, the Danes are not very religious people. My host father once told me most Danes consider themselves four-wheel Christians, meaning they go church on four occasions during their life; their baptism, their communion, their wedding, and their funeral. As I also learned in December, many of them also go for Christmas. Nevertheless, today my extended host-family descended upon Lyngby Kirke, or rather we ascended up to it, as it sits upon a hill. Built in the 1100’s in Romanesque style, it is a beautiful old church. According to its English language promotional material, the church was built on the sight of an earlier wooden church. Apparently, people used to believe that the hill was once a site of pagan worship. It was fairly common practice in the past for churches to be built on the site of pagan temples, making it easier to converts to feel at home with the new religion of the land. Nevertheless, the flyer I grabbed dedicated the entire first paragraph to dispelling this belief, before it even states when the church was built., which quite frankly makes me think they are compensating for something.

That being said, it was a beautiful church. The ceiling was covered in frescoes depicting scenes from the Bible and the lives of the saints. These were of course covered in plaster and white paint with the arrival of the Reformation (Lutherans do love their whitewash), but they have been well preserved and restored. The service was like any other Lutheran service, except that it was in Danish. We sang, prayed, listened to a sermon about spiritual hunger, took communion, and then at the end we witnessed the baptism of three-month-old Vigga Marie.

Afterwards, we all went to Restaurant Kongekilden (The Royal Spring), which is located inside Jægersborg Dyrehave (Jægersborg Deer Park, literally Hunter-Castle’s Animal Garden). We had a lovely Danish Smørgåsbord buffet-style brunch. We ate, among other things, muesli with yoghurt, bread, butter, cold-cut meat, cheese, smoked salmon, sausage, bacon, eggs, fresh fruit, and a delicious chocolate brownie that we all decided was made of pure butter.

After brunch, and several hours of chit-chat, we all went for a walk in the Deer Park. We were hoping to have the chance to see some of the deer, but instead we got to enjoy the beautiful weather animal free. The weather was a little cold, but sun was shining, something we haven’t seen in months. The park is great, though perhaps a bit muddy. It is full of ancient oak trees, many of which have survived lightning strikes. It was a great end to the day, most of which had been spent attempting to interpret 30 Danes conversing simultaneously. My understanding of Danish is getting better, though I still sound awful when I attempt to pronounce even to most simple sentences. Maybe one day I will get a hang of it, but for now I must content myself with merely understanding some of what is going on around me. It will be a strange change when I get home and can understand every conversation, read every sign, and order a pastry without butchering its name.

Padborg

Padborg is a very small town that lies immediately to the north of the Danish-German Border. It was here we visited a small concentration camp called Frøselv built during WWII to house Danish political prisoners who defied the German occupation of Denmark. Denmark has a unique history in regards to WWII, especially in its relationship to Germany at that time. In and of itself, Germany viewed Denmark rather ambivalently, as it was fairly small, and racially acceptable to the Nazi regime. However, strategically speaking, it was an important steppingstone to the German occupation of Norway. Norway was important to Germany because it offered access to controlling the North Sea, as well as proximity to the United Kingdom. Southern Norway is less than 300 miles from Scotland. Therefore on 9 April 1940, Germany launched ‘Operation Weserübong’ and invaded Denmark and Norway simultaneously. Less than six hours after German troops arrived in Denmark, King Christian X and the Danish Government officially surrendered with objection to the German Occupation. This is seen by many, especially those outside of Denmark, as a sign of either cowardice on the part of the Danes, or even worse as an indication of complacency with or support for Nazi Ideology. Nevertheless, most people in Denmark understand that it was the right decision to make. Denmark lost 16 soldiers in the few hours it resisted the German invasion, and had it continued it would have inevitably lost many more. The decision to “cooperate with objection” to the German occupation also insured the continued protection of Danish lives over the course of the war. The Danish people had managed to evacuate a majority of its Jewish population to neutral Sweden before the invasion. Additionally those five hundred or so Jews who were exported from Denmark to Theresienstadt Concentration Camp were never sent on to extermination camps. That being said, between 50 and 100 did perish during this period, predominantly but not exclusively of old age. The Danish government was also allowed to establish its own prison camp for Danish political dissidents and saboteurs. This was an attempt to ensure that Danish citizens were not deported to camps in Germany and Occupied Europe, where conditions were considerably worse. The camp was run by Germans, but funded by the Danish government. From what we learned while visiting the camp, it was much better than the camps elsewhere, but was still packed with several times its maximum occupancy towards the end of the war. Additionally, some prisoners were deported to German camps elsewhere. In all of Denmark 6,000 prisoners were held in concentration camps by the German government, and approximately 10% of them died or were executed during the process. This is one of the lowest mortality rates among Occupied Europe, and is generally understood to be a direct result of the Danish government’s decision not to resist the Germans.

From GoogleEarth

Photos of the Camp today

As you can see from the photos above, the camp itself is located inside of a small forest, and is made up of administrative buildings, barracks, and guard towers. We toured a museum in one of the barracks that documents life for the prisoners at the camp. We also heard from the Director of the museum, who explained the history and significance of the camp during WWII.

The Director also discussed the camp after the end of the war. It was converted by the Danish government into Fårhus Camp, and housed many of those who were convicted to prison sentences for collaborating with the Nazi’s during the war. This is one of the most controversial aspects of the camp, and is a very complicated issue, especially considering the relationship between Denmark and Germany in this area. Southern Jutland is a region that has historically been a part of to both Germany and Denmark, and is therefore a place where the two have mixed, and where the German minority has lived for generations. During the war however, many Germans living in Denmark felt a sense of allegiance to Germany, and many were sympathetic to Nazism. Many Danish citizens, including those considering themselves to be ethnically German, decided to collaborate with the Germans during the occupation. Many young men also joined the German army to fight the Soviets. However, when the war ended, the re-established Danish government passed retrospective laws that made collaboration with the Germans a crime. Many members of the German minority in Denmark, as well as other Danish citizens, were punished under these laws. Over all 40,000 people were arrested for suspicion of collaboration, most of whom were punished with under four years in prison (such as the one at Padborg). However 5,000 were released without charges, and 46 were executed. Many people felt that this law, especially in the respect that it acted retrospectively, in essence making certain actions illegal that were fully legal at the time of said action, amounts to nothing more than petty revenge on the part of the Danish government. This is a highly problematic part of the camps history, especially as so many members of the German minority in this region of Denmark felt as if they were unjustly treated after the war. The museum is currently working on an exhibition commemorating the Fårhus Prison, but the director clearly has strong feelings against it. He emphasized several times that those convicted were punished for collaborating with a terrorist government. It was also clear that as a very patriotic Dane, he was personally offended by any Danish citizen who he thought was working against his country.

The story of Denmark during WWII is one fraught with difficulties. On the one hand, Danes are proud that their decision to collaborate with the occupation (with objection) decreased the loss of life in Denmark, and they are especially proud that they were able to save so many of their Jewish citizens. However, those who did collaborate with the Germans, as the government did, were punished after the war. Danes also idolize the Danish Resistance Movement, which fought against the Germans once they had established control of Denmark. As our museum director contradictorily put it, “collaborating with the invasion saved our lives, but the resistance movement saved our honor.” Most Danes don’t know exactly what they feel about this part of their history. In general, they are a peace-loving nation; so finding a relatively peaceful resolution with Nazi Germany is an example of this ideal. At the same time, they believe the resistance movement had the right to fight the Germans, even though the King himself advised his people not to resist for fear of loss of Danish lives. And after the war, they took extraordinary steps to punish those, who as far as I can tell, were only following the example of the Danish government. There is no doubt in anyone’s mind that the Nazi government perpetrated some of the greatest evils known to modern history. But it does beg the question; to what extent can one hold the ordinary German people responsible? To what extent were they blinded by nationalism, fear mongering, or simply overwhelming indoctrination? And how should the descendants of those people, the modern Germans living in Germany or abroad, feel about their past? How do they reconcile their love of country with the horrendous things that country has done over the course of history? In short, for how long are we responsible for the sins of our ancestors?